Author: Gene Kurkijärvi

A cornucopia of exciting plots and strange characters, the mythic epic Kalevala has inspired innumerable artists since its first publication in the 1830s. A recent interpretation of the story of an extremely tragic hero named Kullervo takes the form of a graphic novel by Gene Kurkijärvi: his urban Kullervo lives in a grim environment – not unlike Helsinki, but carrying with dystopian overtones – where the heroes and/or villains are steely androids and hairy weirdos who shoot drugs and use foul language. This 21st-century Kullervo is a surrealist cyberpunk tragedy – laced with pitch-black comedy.

About the author

Gene Kurkijärvi (born 1967, Helsinki) is an architect by training. As a student he was inspired by the Kalevala illustrator and artist Akseli Gallen-Kallela (1865–1931). His favourites in the field of graphic novels and comics include Enki Bilal (France) and Simon Bisley (Great Britain). His first graphic album Aquila Oblige was published in 1991, Kullervo in 2009.